Secured cap for toothpaste tubes and the like



D. QUINT 2,915,227 1 Dec. 1, 1959 Filed May 23, 1957 INVENTOR.

D FIVID QU INT @262; HTTORNEY Dec. 1, 1959 D. QUINT 2,915,227

SECURED CAP FOR TOOTHPASTE TUBES AND THE LIKE Filed May 23, 1957 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR! D FIVID QU INT HTTURNEY Dec. 1, 1959 D. QUINT 2,915,227-

SECURED CAP FOR TOOTHPASTE TUBES AND THE LIKE Filed May 23, 1957 s She ets-Shee 'r. 3

, INVENTOR. DFIVID QUINT HTTURNEY .aration of the closure cap and the container.

United States SECURED CAP FOR TOOTHPASTE TUBES AND THE LIKE David Quint, Brooklyn, NY.

Application 'May 23, 1957,Serial No. 661,062

1 Claim. (Cl. 222 519) This invention relates to closure caps for collapsible containers, such as the tubes in which tooth paste, shaving cream, ointments, and other pasty or semi liquid substances are confined, a container of this type being adapted to dispense a selected quantity of the substance responsive to a squeezing pressure exerted upon the container wall.

Some inconvenience and annoyance result from the fact that a cap of the character described must be given a plurality of turns for the purpose of removing or applying the same. This results in a loss of time, and inaddition, the complete removal of .the cap, for the purpose of permitting a selected amount of the container contents to'be dispensed, often results in the caps dropping rom ones grasp and being lost.

One important object of the present invention is to provide a closure cap for tooth paste tubes which will, at all times, remain assembled with the tube neck, so that it will not be lost.

Another object is to provide a closure cap of the type described which will have .a novel means for normally sealing the dispensing opening or openings of the container, said means being movable into and out of sealing position responsive to rotation of the closure cap through less than .a full 360 cycle of rotation.

Another object is to provide a cap of thecharacter described that will be designed to insure to the maximum extent against any of the container contents being left upon the exposed surfaces of the cap or container, thereby to maintain the cap and container in a sanitary condition while preventing .drying of the lcontainer contents.

Still another ob'jectlis to provide .a cap as stated which will have an improved seal designed to insure to the maximum extent-against accidental leakage of the container contents.

captive, but which can be readily adjusted to a position for the purpose of permitting intentional, complete sep- In this way, it is proposed to not only facilitate assembly or disassembly of'the device, but also, it is proposed to permit thecap .to hereused 'if desired, on a fresh container.

A further object of importance is to form a closure cap that'will be of decidedly inexpensive construction.

For further comprehension of the invention, and of the objects and advantages "thereof, reference will :be had to the following description and accompanying drawings, and to the appended .claim in which the various novel features lot the invention are more particularly set forth.

In the accompanying'draw'ings forming a material part of this disclosure: I

Fig. 1 is a fragmentary elevational view of a collapsible container, showing the upper portion of the same, a closure cap being applied thereto and being in a full, sealing position, the cap being'shown partially in longitudinal section and partly in elevation.

2,915,227 Patented Dec. 1, 1959 Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the closure cap and container.

Fig. 3 is a plan sectional view substantially on line 3-3 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a transverse sectional view substantially on line 4-4 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 5 is a greatly enlarged, fragmentary perspective view showing the interengaging abutment means on the cap and tube respectively.

Fig. 6 is a view like Fig. 1 in which the cap has been adjusted to its outlet-exposing position.

Fig. 7 is a sectional view longitudinally through the cap and container, substantially on line 7-7 of Fig. 4.

Fig. 8 is a view like Fig. '1 showing a modified construction.

Fig. 9 is an enlarged, fragmentary side elevational view of the Fig. 8 construction, as seen frornthe line 9-9 of Fig. 8.

Fig. -10 is a detail sectional view, on the same scale ,as Fig. 9, taken substantially on line '1'0-10of 'Fig. '9.

Fig. 11 is a fragmentary, exploded perspective view of another modification.

Fig. 12 is an enlarged view of the tube and cap of Fig. 11, showing the tube fragmentarily in side elevation, the cap being shown in'longitudinal section in a full sealing position.

Fig. 13 is a sectional view on the same scale as Fig. '12 taken substantially on line 13-13 of Fig. '12, the cap being shown in full and dotted lines in its container'' sealing and opening positions respectively.

Fig. 14 is a perspective view on approximately the same scaleas Figs. 12 and lint the cap per se in the modified construction shown in Fig. 11. 7

Referring to the drawings in detail, in the form of the invention shown in Figs. 1-7, the reference numeral 10 designates a conventional collapsible container, such as a tooth paste tube, having the usualcollapsible body at the head end of which there is provideda shallowly frustoconical head end wall 112' integral at its .center with .an axially extending neck 14.

As shown to particular advantage in Figs. ,1 and 7, in accordance with the invention the wall '12 and the neck 14 are of thin'but rigid metal, and the neck is completely hollow to define therein an outlet chamber 15 for the tube contents. Said chamber is in continuous, full communication with the interior of the collapsible body of the tube, and as shown in Fig. 7, the neck includes a constant-diameter, cylindrical base portion'having threads 16. In a preferred embodiment, the threads are of the coarse or quick threaded type, so that the closure cap will move between its normal, sealing position shown .in

Fig. l to its open position shown in .Fig. 6 responsive to rotational movement thereof through slightly 'less than a single 360 cycle. 1

Threads 16 are pressed out'of the material of the side wall of the base portion of the neck 14, in the illustrated embodiment, and above the threaded base portion the neck includes a frusto-conical or tapering extension 18,

in the side wall of which one or more dispensing openings I pletely closed end wall 22, lying in a plane normal to the axis of the neck.

A closure cap has-been generally designated 24 and in Figs. 1-6 is of molded plastic, including a fiat, thick, circular body 26 integrally formed with a depending centrally disposed skirt 28; At the lower end of the skirt there is integrally formed a radially outwardly extending arm 30 constituting an abutment or stop adapted toengage an upwardly projecting abutment 32 integrally or otherwise rigidly connected to the end wall 12 adjacent neck 14. The abutment 30 could, when the cap is initially applied, be flexed upwardly so as to permit the cap to move downwardly to its Fig. l or its Fig. 7 position. Then, the abutment 30 may be bent to its operative position shown in the drawings, so as to thereafter be disposed in position to be engaged by the projection 32 on rotation of the cap in respectively opposite directions.

As shown in Fig. 7, the skirt 28 has an axial, constant diameter bore 34 internally threaded complemeutarily to the threads 16. Bore 34,-adjacent the outer end of the cap, has a tapering extension36 mating with the extension 18 of the neck.

Therefore, it will be apparent that assuming that the abutment arm 30 has been moved to its operative position, the cap may be moved to a full sealing position in which the abutment 30 will be engaged against the abutments 32 (see Figs. 1 and 7).

If 'it is desired to dispense the contents, the cap is merely rotated counterclockwise in Figs. 2 and 4, from its full "sealing position. The cap will be rotatable through slightly less than 360, until it moves to a position in which its abutment 30 will be in the dotted line position thereof shown in Fig. 4, that is, the full line position shown in Fig. 6. At this time, the cap will have been shifted axially outwardly of the extension, so that the wall of the bore extension 36 is spaced. from the apertured wall of the extension 18 of the neck. The outlet openings are thus exposed or uncovered, and on squeezing of the tube, the material will flow through said openings into the space surrounding the extension 18, thence to pass outwardly through an outlet opening 37 defined centrally in the outer surface of the body 26, where the bore extension 36 opens onto said surface.

It is shown in Figs. 810 that the cap and tube may have a modified abutment means. In this form, the tube 10 has a neck 14 provided with the threads 16* and the tapered extension 18 formed with outlet openings 20 All this is as in the first form of the invention. Further, there is a closure cap 24 having body 26 and depending skirt 28 internally threaded to receive the neck; Again, there is no change from the first form of the invention.

In the modified construction, however, the abutment 32 of the end wall 12 of the collapsible tube is pressed out of the material of the end wall, extending radially outwardly from the base of the neck and having an approximately rectangular shape as shown in Fig. 10. Said abutment 32 is of hollow formation, and is engageable by a depending abutment arm 30 formed upon the lower extremity of the skirt 28 and projecting downwardly groin the skirt rather than radially outwardly there- The functional characteristics are the same as in the first form, that is, the cap is rotatable through slightly less than 360, between its sealing and open positions.

In Figs. 11-14 there is shown a modified construction that is particularly adapted to facilitate the assembly or disassembly of the cap and tube, and which is adapted, when said assembly is effected, to make the cap captive while still permitting the rotational movement thereof on the threaded neck between open and closed positions.

This modification makes use of the tube shown in Figs. 17, without any modification thereof. However, instead of the cap 24, there is used a cap 24 which is pressed out of a single blank of thin sheet metal material, although other materials having the characteristic of being readily bendable may be employed.

Cap 24 includes a sleeve or body 40, the upper .end

of which (Fig. 12) tapers correspondingly to the extension 18, the tapered portion of said sleeve 40 merging into the depending, constant-diameter extension having threads 38 pressed out of the material thereof.

At its upper end, the sleeve 40 is integral with a planiform, outwardly directed flange 42 which in turn is integral at its periphery with 21 depending, constantdiameter skirt 44 spaced outwardly from the body 40. The outer surface of the skirt 44, at the upper end thereof, can be knurled as at 46 or otherwise roughened to facilitate rotational movement of the cap.

Referring to Fig. 12 and also to Fig. 13, the upstanding, tapered abutment or projection 32 of the tube is adapted to be disposed in the space between the body it) and the depending skirt 44. In this connection, as shown in Figs. 11 and 14, at closely spaced locations upon the circumference of the skirt 44, at the lower end of the skirt, there are provided opposite but identical inverted L-shaped slits 48 terminating at the lower extremity of the skirt and defining correspondingly opposite but identical tongues 50. These may be bent along lines parallel to the axis of the skirt inwardly to their Fig. 13 positions. The free ends of the tongues, thus, are now disposed in the space between the body 4-1) and the sleeve 44, so that when the cap is rotated in one direction, one tongue 50 will engage one side of the abutment 32. When the cap is rotated in an opposite direction, the free end of the other tongue 50 will engage the opposite side of the abutment 32.

The construction, as will be apparent, is one that facilitates the assembly and disassembly of the cap with the tube. Originally, the tongues 50 will remain un bent, and will form part of the regular circular or annular cross section of the sleeve. Therefore, the cap can be threaded onto the neck 14, to its Fig. 12 position. With the cap in its Fig. 12 position, that is, in a position sealing the outlet opening 20, the tongues 50 may be pressed inwardly to the full line positions shown in Fig. 13. This makes the cap captive, so that the cap, while being rotatable through less than a 360? cycle between its sealing and unsealing positions, will remain securely assembled with the tube. The cap is shown in its sealing position in full lines in Fig. 13 and in its outlet-exposing position in dotted lines in the same figure of the drawing.

Kit is desired to disassemble the cap and tube, one need merely bend the tongues outwardly, out of a path in which they would engage the abutment 32. The tongue 50, that is illustrated at the left in Fig. 14, is shown bent outwardly into a position such that it will clear the abutment. The other tongue may or may not be bent outwardly, and it is not essential that the other tongue be bent outwardly, since the tongue will in effect ratchet past the. abutment 32 on rotationoi the cap in a direction to thread the same oh the neck.

Subsequently, when the capis used on another tube, the tongues may be readily bent back to their operative positions.

While I have illustrated and described the preferred embodiments of my invention, it is to be understood that I do not limit myself to the precise constructions herein disclosed and that various changes and modifications may be made within the scope of the invention. as defined in the appended claim.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by United States Letters Patcut is:

In a'capped container, a container body including a neck having at least one outlet opening, a cap mounted on the neck for rotation between oppositeextreme positions in one of which the cap covers the opening and in the other of which it uncovers the opening, and abutments interengaging between dump and the container to limit rotation of the cap beyond its respectively-opposite extreme positions, the abutment of the container being stationary, said abutment of the cap engaging one side of the container abutment in one of said cap positions and the other side of the container abutment in the other cap position to limit said rotation of the cap to an angular distance less than 360, said neck of the container body being externally threaded, the cap having a cylindrical body engaging about said threaded neck, the threaded neck including a tapering extension in which said outlet opening is formed, the cap body having a neck-receiving bore formed with a complementary ex tension, whereby to sealably engage against the tapered extension of the container neck responsive to movement of the cap to its opening-covering position, said abutment of the container being elongated, and extending parallel to the axis of the neck, said cap being formed with a skirt surrounding and spaced outwardly from the body, the abutment of the container extending in the space between the skirt and the cap body, the abutment of the cap being constituted by a spring tongue structure enclosed within the skirt, said tongue structure being defined and separated from the skirt by inverted L-shaped lines providing adjacent skirt-and tongue structure edges definingbendable tongues, said tongue structure being connected to the skirt by a tongue root, said abutment of the cap projecting inwardly from the skirt into said space between the skirt and the cap body, the abutment of the cap extending eccentrically to the skirt.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,597,665 Baltzley Aug. 31, 1926 1,969,777 Burke Aug. 14, 1934 2,056,005 Fleisch Sept. 29, 1936 2,550,572 Loomis Apr. 24, 1951 2,791,358 Gaertner May 7, 1957 2,849,166 Eitzel Aug. 26, 1958 FOREIGN PATENTS 631,491 Great Britain Nov. 3, 1949 20 1,113,774 France Dec. 12, 1955 

